Statement of Jeff Mazzella, President of the Center for Individual Freedom

Alexandria, VA  Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee opened its hearing to consider John Roberts’ nomination to be Chief Justice of the United States. In response, Jeff Mazzella, President of the Center for Individual Freedom, made the following statement:

“Judge Roberts hit a home run today with his remarks. His comments were obviously from the heart and his presentation was phenomenal.

“Judge Roberts’ remarks were striking for their clarity and insight. He made it clear that he has the proper view of a judge’s role in our constitutional system. Most importantly, Judge Roberts underscored his commitment to the law. He obviously understands that a judge’s role is to apply the law, not legislate from the bench.

“The Democrats failed in their effort to frame these hearings as a forum for their skewed view of the law and the Constitution. And they failed in their contemptible effort to use the Hurricane Katrina disaster against this distinguished nominee.

“The coming days will no doubt see an escalation in the Left’s attacks. And Americans will see how out of step the Left really is with mainstream America. ”

The Center for Individual Freedom (www.cfif.org/supremecourt) is a non-profit, non-partisan constitutional and free-market advocacy organization dedicated to protecting individual freedoms and rights in the legal, legislative and educational arenas. For nearly four years, the Center has been a leader in pushing the Senate to hold up-or-down votes on judicial nominations.